Are we inadvertently lying to ourself/others?

While surfing the other WLS support board, I read a fellow WLS veteran's blog entry about how we all tell each other and our self that we had WLS for our health but how it is really about looking better or more attractive. No, he didn't say it that way. That is just sort of what I took from it. He pointed out how so many of our posts are about how much weight we lost or how many sizes we've dropped or how someone didn't recognize us, etc. By comparison, we see few posts about how many comorbid issues have been resolved, etc. When was the last time you clicked on a WOW moment post and read about someone's cholesterol dropping from 280 to 199? When was the last time you clicked on a NSV (non scale victory) post and read about someone not taking diabetes meds anymore instead of them fitting into a size 6 jean? I'm not discounting the joy to be had in those moments! After all, I have a WLS friend who says "It is all about getting healthy...till that first time you get into a size 10 jean and then it is ALL about you!"

I'm just pointing out that I don't think we celebrate these other things as much as we should. I know that I personally got off of about 8 different prescription medications. I no longer have high blood pressure. My cholesterol was down several points. My degenerative disc disease and bone-on-bone knees are SO much less painful and I no longer require multiple daily doses of narcotic pain meds just to get through the day. I may still be at risk for diabetes, heart disease an stroke, but it is because of my family history and not my current physical status. I can EXERCISE! I don't do it nearly as often as I should, but I CAN. I can park in the farthest parking spot from the door at just about any place I go and not be winded by the time I reach the door. Not only CAN I do that, but I do it often (much to the chagrin of my teenage child who thinks we should park as closely as possible at ALL times). I am walking a leg in a marathon relay this coming Saturday--5 miles. My hubby asked me why I wanted to do it. I told him that I want to do it simply because I CAN and could not have done it a year ago or at any other time in the past 20 years. He supports this thankfully as the trip to Myrtle Beach to do this isn't free! LOL And, my daughter is walking a leg too. We are trying to incorporate more together time into these things I can do now that I couldn't before. Yet another HEALTHY thing that has come from my surgery even though it is an emotional health and not physical health issue.

SO, tell us--why did you have the surgery? And was it truly about being healthier OR was it about feeling/looking better for yourself or others?
Lea